Lola Shoneyin (born Titilola Atinuke Alexandrah Shoneyin; 26 February 1974 in Ibadan, Nigeria) is a Nigerian poet and author who launched her debut novel, The Secret Lives of Baba Segi's Wives, in the UK in May 2010. Shoneyin has forged a reputation as an adventurous, humorous and outspoken poet (often classed in the feminist mould), having published three volumes of poetry. Her writing delves into themes related to female sexuality and the difficulties of domestic life in Africa.In April 2014 she was named on the Hay Festival's Africa39 list of 39 Sub-Saharan African writers aged under 40 with potential and talent to define trends in African literature. Lola won the PEN Award in America as well as the Ken Saro-Wiwa Award for prose in Nigeria. She was also on the list for the Orange Prize in the UK for her debut novel, The Secret of Baba Segi's Wives, in 2010. She lives in Lagos, Nigeria, where she runs the annual Aké Arts and Book Festival. In 2017, she was named African Literary Person of the Year by Brittle Paper. Biography Early life Titilola Atinuke Alexandrah Shoneyin was born in Ibadan, the capital of Oyo State, south-western Nigeria, in 1974. She is the youngest of six children and the only girl. Her parents, Chief Tinuoye Shoneyin and Mrs. Yetunde Shoneyin (née Okupe), are Remo indigenes from Ogun State. Shoneyin’s work is significantly influenced by her life, notably providing material on polygamy for her debut novel; her maternal grandfather, Abraham Olayinka Okupe (1896-1976) was the traditional ruler of Iperu Remo and had five wives. He ascended the throne in 1938 and died in 1976. Education and career At the age of six, she went to boarding school in the UK, attending Cargilfield School, Edinburgh; The Collegiate School, Winterbourne, Bristol, and Fettes Junior School in Edinburgh. Returning to Nigeria after her father was imprisoned by the then military government, she completed her secondary education at Abadina College. She later earned her BA (Hons) degree from Ogun State University in 1994/95. Shoneyin's early writing consists mainly of poetry and short stories. Early examples of her work appeared in the Post Express in 1995, which features a short story about a Nigerian woman who leaves her husband for an Austrian woman. This story initiated dialogue about homosexuality within a Nigerian context. Her first volume of poetry, So All the Time I was Sitting on an